Women's cricket has too many interested parties and is too big to fail

The ECB has had to prioritise this Covid-19 affected season but a ‘gender-balanced game’ remains the goal for the ruling body

If frost arrives unexpectedly, or cruelly, tender, young plants wither and die. Hardier ones are more likely to see it out, with only a browned leaf as a war wound, raring to sprout after a prudent prune. Timing, as ever, is everything.

And so to women’s cricket, frosted by Covid-19 in the sharpest way. With two international series for England, against India and South Africa, a new Hundred competition complete with joint marketing alongside the men’s franchises (if much less exposure on television) and player contracts worth up to £15,000, this summer was expected to be a vital one.

Related: Charlotte Edwards fears delay to the Hundred will damage women's cricket